OIT News – November 2011

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Follow OIT on Twitter @NCStateOIT
For up-to-the minute reports on OIT systems, see SysNews
For help with computing problems, contact the NC State Help Desk

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::01: “Google Day” is Nov. 30!On Wednesday, Nov. 30, all remaining GroupWise users will be migrated to Google Apps @ NC State, the university’s official email provider. GroupWise will be unavailable at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 29. All new Google Apps users should have access to their Gmail and Google Calendars by Wednesday morning (Nov. 30), with an approximate target time of 8 a.m.

Over the past several weeks, OIT has been in contact with all migrating GroupWise users in preparation for this complex undertaking. On Google Day, the NC State Help Desk, along with a cross-campus IT support team, will be available to help migrating users. Help Desk calls related to the GroupWise-to-Google migration will have first priority on Wednesday, Nov. 30.

Currently, the contacts list consists only of members of the university community who have an active Google Apps @ NC State account and who do not have a privacy block on their information. Your entry contains your email address, your first name and your last name. Eventually, more information such as your title and department will become available in the entry.

03: University launches new IT Governance model
Dr. Marc Hoit, Vice Chancellor for Information Technology, announces the launch of a new IT Governance model at NC State.

Approved by both university IT and the Office of Information Technology leadership, IT Governance at NC State defines how IT decision-making is accomplished across campus. The process of identifying members for the various IT Governance committees and subcommittees is currently underway. For more information about the new structure, visit IT Governance at NC State.

04:Mark your calendar! FOSS Fair 2012 is Feb. 18
The NC State Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) community announces that FOSS Fair 2012 will be held Saturday, Feb. 18 beginning at 9 a.m. in Room 3211 of Engineering Building 2 (EB2) on NC State’s Centennial Campus.

An unconference-style event, the FOSS Fair is completely driven by its participants, and any topic relating to free and open source software is welcome. You can suggest a session, volunteer to give a talk and register for the event on the website. For more information about the conference, contact Jack Neely, event coordinator, at 513-1522 or visit the FOSS Fair 2012 website.

05: University warns employees of illegal peer-to-peer file sharingAll NC State University employees are reminded of the personal risks and legal consequences of unauthorized distribution of copyrighted materials, including illegal peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing.

Music, movies, videos, games and other online media are protected by or subject to copyright law and are usually illegal to share through peer‐to-peer (P2P) file applications. Downloading or uploading even small portions of a copyrighted work without permission in most situations constitutes a copyright infringement, which could subject you to great personal financial risks and legal consequences, including the possibility of six-figure monetary fines, loss of employment, and/or criminal conviction. File sharing also creates a substantial risk that others can gain access to confidential data on your computer or plant destructive computer viruses that could spread across the university’s network.

To deter the use of P2P file transfers for illegal purposes, the university may use technology that monitors copyrighted traffic on university networks and computers. Even small amounts of file sharing can be detected. The university takes quick action when notified of alleged copyright infringements. Incidents are referred to appropriate campus officials, and steps are taken to stop the unauthorized download or distribution of copyrighted materials. A copyright violation using a university network or equipment may result in a permanent record at the university, may serve as evidence in court, and may adversely affect your employment, up to and including discharge.

06: Financial System upgrade is underway!On March 26, 2012, the Financial System will be upgraded from Version 8.9 to Version 9.1. The Financial System is accessed by campus users through the MyPack Portal. This upgrade is a joint project with Finance and Business, OIT, and 87 campus testing volunteers from a wide range of colleges and departments.

The upgrade will maintain vendor support from Oracle and offer efficiencies in processing and sharing electronic attachments within the Financial System. In addition to electronic workflow improvements, the new Financial System will certify compatibility with the Safari Web browser, Microsoft Excel 2010, Microsoft Windows OS, and Apple Mac OS. For more information on the upgrade, visit the Financial System Upgrade website.

While many more are being planned, join Don Schmidt and Twanda Baker of OIT Design, Education and Outreach to learn about “Google Apps @ NC State mail and calendar” on Thursday, Dec. 1 from 9 a.m. to noon in Room 110 of the Avent Ferry Technology Center. This and other future sessions will cover everything you need to know to get started with Gmail and Google Calendar, including an overview of the apps and helpful resources. For more information and to register for upcoming Google Apps workshops, visit Classmate.

08: SAR training scheduled for Dec. 6Security Access Request (SAR) training for campus requestors and approvers of access to secured university data will be held on Tuesday, Dec. 6 from 9:30 a.m. to noon in ITTC Lab 2 of D.H. Hill Library. Please visit Classmate to view available classes and to sign up for training.

09: Avoid holiday shopping scams
To ensure your holidays are merry, OIT Security and Compliance advises that you watch out for holiday scams in both email and social media networking posts. Among those likely to be seen this holiday season are:

Trojan holiday screen savers, ring-tones, e-cards and mobile apps: These may actually look or sound great, but scan them first for viruses and don’t open them if you don’t know who sent them to you.

Holiday phishing scams: Strange or even not-so-strange emails that are purported to have come from your bank or credit card company could be fake. If you receive an email notice that your bank or credit card has been suspended, call your bank or credit card company directly.

Travel scams: These scams – often taking the form of free or discounted airline tickets – are attempts to obtain your frequent flyer username and password. To see the real deals, go to the airline websites directly. Also, look out for scams where individuals are asking you to wire them money because they are destitute.

Phony offers for popular IT gifts: Using the Internet to search for coupons can help you find great deals, but can also lead to trouble. Be wary of coupon offers requesting too much personal information, such as your passwords or credit card numbers.

Mailing scams: Your online purchase will likely be shipped to you, so you should beware of fake emails purporting to come from UPS, FedEx and DHL. Emails with Trojan attachments claiming to come from popular packaging shippers were making their rounds earlier this year. Again, visit the company’s website and don’t open email attachments you aren’t expecting.

To subscribe by email, send the following message to mj2@lists.ncsu.edu:
subscribe oitnews
To unsubscribe by email, send the following message to mj2@lists.ncsu.edu:
unsubscribe oitnews
(These messages should be sent to mj2@lists.ncsu.edu, not to the OIT News list itself.)

For help with computing at NC State, visit the NC State Help Desk website, phone 515-HELP (4357), or visit Room 101, West Dunn Building.